WIAW #73 Eats when I'm sick

Hello, hello lovely people!

Even the un-lovely people- hello! (I'm just kidding, you're all lovelies....hopefully ;)

Anywho, it's Wednesday and on Wednesday we drool over other people's eats because we are all foodies.

Yep, it's WIAW thanks to Peas and Crayons for creating this awesome weekly link-up! Now enough babbling, onto the FOOOOD! (This day of eats is from Monday)

Breakfast: 7:25am
Woke up Monday morning, still pretty unwell, but determined to go to school as I hate being sick and missing out and stopping life and... yeh.
So I did some light yoga (thank you Fightmaster) and then sauntered into the kitchen to whip up some grub!

Grub was good.

In my almost empty jar of smooth peanut butter went some choc banana oats (rolled oats + banana + raw cacao powder + chia seeds + cinnamon + almond milk- heated on the stove until liquid absorbed and then stirred together with some greek yoghurt= choc cheesecake!)

Perfect bowl for warm, gooey oats!

However sick I am, I still seem to find the appetite to eat!

Snack:11:00am
I'd feel bad if I showed you yet another picture of peas in a pot. :)

But there were peas in a pot.


Lunch: 1:15pm
Still dying through school (but still determined to stick to normalcy!) lunch couldn't have come soon enough!

Prepped the night before was a delicious tupperware container of roasted brussels, broc and eggplant (roasted in olive oil) with some spinach and tri-coloured quinoa.

Look- here's a blurry picture of a brussel sprout for you!

You're welcome ;) (but seriously if you haven't tried brusells sprouts, eggplant or broccoli roasted in olive oil- you are missing out!!!)

Snack: 4:00pm
Finally the school day was over and I dove into some fruit and soy milk:

A cut up (hard!) pear with super crisp, delicious red grapes.

Dinner: 6:45
I was over life the day, so I simply cut up some veg, popped it on a tray, little bit of oil and roasted. Done.

Served with some lentils and spinach. Too easy and too delicious!!

After dinner, for dessert I had... a lemsip. Yum. Though the other night I had a piece of 85% dark choc and fell in love. T'was very good indeed!

What about you:
What's your favourite form of movement when sick? I simply can't sit still! I think it makes it obvious how gross I feel.
Best 'when sick' breakfast?
Do you lose your appetite when you're sick?

That's it from me today folks, make sure to check out what everyone else is nom-ing on, and also have yourself a wonderful day! Bye for now friendly friends!! :D

My new favourite bowl of oats?

If you've been reading Steph2 chef for a while now, you may remember this post, where I profess my love of vanilla steel cut oats with nut butter, claiming it to be my favourite bowl of oats. Ever.

And, I mean, that's a pretty big claim. Those oats must taste pretty dang good! (and they do, btw.)

Then one morning I made some other oats...

Into a saucepan went 1 sliced banana + 1/2-3/4 cup rolled oats+ handful frozen blueberries + chia seeds + 1/2 teaspoon lemon rind + 1 teaspoon lemon juice + 1 cup almond milk + 1/4 cup water.

I let that sit over medium heat for a few minutes, stirring regularly until all the liquid was absorbed (around 7-10 minutes)
After that, I let it sit for a few minutes, stirred again and then stirred in 2 tablespoons greek yoghurt (optional) and poured it into my bowl (stopping halfway to put some coconut butter in the middle and then topping off with the rest of oats and a bit more coconut butter :)

What you see before you, my friends, is exquisitiveness in a bowl!! (yep, new word).
The combination of the creaminess from the oats and banana, the pops of sweetness from the blueberries, the tang of the lemon and then the fudgy goodness of the coconut butter is almost too good to be true.

Almost.

I think if I were to pick the secret ingredient that truly makes this dish, it would be this guy:

Nope not the oats. That little lemon hiding behind the oats!!

Lemon + coconut + blueberry oats. My new perfect bowl of oats!!

Your turn:
What is your perfect bowl of oats?
Are you a fan of using lemon rind in baking (love, love, love it!)
Favourite topping for oats? (Mine depends on how I'm feeling, but more often then not it's nut butter and then coconut butter :)

That's it from me today friendly friends, let me know if you try out these oats if you love them as much as me and have a wonderful day! Bye!! :D

Steph the Yogi

Hi my name is Steph and I'm a lover of all heart racing, sweat inducing, blood pumping, activities. Which is why I'm a runner. And also a fan of chaotic dancing around the house.
 :)

However I'm also a fan of the deep, relaxing, meditating forms of movement.

Which brings me to yoga.

Now, if you read my WIAW from last week (not pre-requisite reading... unlike completing chemistry for a university nutrition course :( I love school. So much.) you may have noticed me mentioning doing some morning yoga (before I raced to the kitchen for FOOD!).

I've done yoga in the past, both a regular class and a teens yoga class, and enjoyed it so, s much! I mean, I'm a skeptic. It's true. So when my first ever yoga instructor told me yoga does so much more than give you a good stretch (for example tapping into your emotions by opening your hips, or helping with sleep and anxiety) I was a bit unsure.

And then I was converted.

Yoga offered me so many benefits, not only the physical improvement in flexibility and strength, but also an outlet for my frustrations an stress and a way to centre myself and just. Stop.

So when I was reading Paleo Running Momma's blog and came across her speaking only good things about a YouTube yoga channel called Fightmaster yoga, I became intrigued.

As year 11 has seemed to take ALL my free time, ever, I have found that easy to access at home activities are where it's at for me in this stage of life. So, one morning, I woke up bright and early, drank some water, popped up a YouTube tab on my iPad and did an incredible 30 minute yoga session focusing on stretching out my back, hips and legs.

There was that awesome yoga sensation that I've never gotten from anything else in life. Not even running. I was instantly calmed, relaxed and centered into myself and haven't looked back! Now I log onto Fightmaster yoga at least 3 mornings a week and get my yogi on focusing on whatever it is I'm feeling like that day (strength, flexibility, relaxation etc.). Then I alternate the rest of my mornings with either weight training or running (currently middle distance interval training for school. Blah.) or rest days. Boy has it been awesome!

I don't know why I keep forgetting about yoga when it gives me so many benefits, but now that I've found  ways I can do downward dog in my comfy PJ's I don't think I'll be stopping any time soon! ;)

What about you?
Are you a yoga fan? 
What was your first experience like? 
Any funny/inspirational yoga stories? 

If you've never done yoga before, definitely give Lesley Fightmaster a go and who knows, you might just fall in love with it! Bye for now friendly friends!! :D

Sunday Love! And cereal ;)

Happy Sunday friendly friends!!

First-things-first: BREAKFAST (Because breakfast always comes first!!)

I was kind of unsure about what to have this morning as Sunday morning pancakes just didn't sound appealing (no judgement- it happens sometimes!) so I took a quiz and it told me...

 Cereal:

Yep, cereal. At first I was like, I don't really own any cereal. And then I was like, well I'll make a Steph version.

Enter breakfast:

 Started off with the thick, purple, creamy milk:

1 frozen banana + 1 handful frozen blackberries + 3 spoons greek yoghurt (optional)- whazzed up in a food processor until smooth- Then placed in the freezer for around 20-30mins to harden up a bit)

Next came the chunky, fugdy, nut-buttery cereal:

A mix of almond butter and peanut butter granola (note the darker granola on the right= almond butter)

And therefore, my breakfast of cereal and milk:

;)
Also, on an awesome note, look what's back:

ALL THE SUN! I love it!!

So, yes, my day started off with 'cereal' and 'milk' Steph-style. Seriously better than the original!

Nom.

Now, who's ready for some links I've been loving from the week?

Food:

Easy, Quick & Healthy Breakfast Ideas!

The Ultimate Guide to Nuts 

Cookies n’ Cream Stuffed Brookie {Gluten Free&Vegan}

Baked Vegan Green Chili & Jalapeno Creamy Nacho Mac & Cheese

Vegan Hazelnut & Chocolate “Nutella” Pudding

The Ultimate 1 Minute Protein Brownie (Paleo, Vegan, gluten free)

Sweet potato pie smoothie

Fitness:

Pro Tips to Help You Stick to Your Health and Fitness Goals

Why Are Morning Runners So Happy?

10 minute kettlebell butt, leg and core workout

 

Health:

9 Popular Food Cravings And What They Say About Your Emotions

Funny:

 

The 25 Most Spectacular Fast Food Fails Of All Time

16 Reasons People Who Shower At Night Are Doing It Right

24 Pictures That Perfectly Sum Up Real Life

I hope you found some interesting reads in that lot and I also hope you have a fantastic rest of your day gearing up for the week to come! Bye for now friends!! :D

Thinking Out Loud- The Food Edition!

Hidy ho friendly friends and happy Thursday!

On Thursday's we Think Out Loud, thanks to the awesome Spoons and today I am thinking about FOOD! Shocker, I know ;).

Any who, I like food, you like food, we all like food, so let's jump into the randomness that is food (from my passed week!).

1. I go through phases of being a smooth or a crunchy lover.
Which is kind of strange, because it is the age old debate! You know what I mean:

 The smooth vs Crunchy debate has also sparked multiple arguments and feuds between my friends (including me! Depending which type I'm liking at the moment ;) over which is superior and which is totally gross.

I don't really get how a few chunks can make that much of a difference to taste... but I know as a kid I wouldn't even consider putting crunchy peanut butter in my sandwich! Strange, huh?

As I said before, now-a-days, it's whatever I'm feeling like when I'm at the shops that gets thrown in my trolley:

Finishing off the crunchy with some choc protein oats :)

Opening up the smooth:

I totally see the love for smooth.. but sometimes crunchy just adds that little extra something!

2. Speaking of phases. Guess which obsession is back?

Not pesto.

Not cookies.

Not oats.

Nope.
We're back to roast potatoes!

Baby potatoes, orange sweet potatoes, purple sweet potatoes, Japanese sweet potatoes, regular white potatoes... ALL THE POTATOES!

You know how much I love my Japanese white sweet potato... and that love has come back strong!!

That texture and flavour though...

I'm pretty sure I may have eaten my weight in different types of potato this past week!

3. On the topic of potatoes:

This dinner contained potatoes, which means it is relevant. In saying that (even though they were amazing) I'm not talking about the potatoes (which were lovingly roasted in delicious coconut oil along with some cut up parsnip!).

Nope I'm talking about this delightful side which I should definitely be making more often:

It was simply some steamed greens topped off with some vegan cheese. Like a cheesey bake of some sort and so, so, so delicious (and simple) this sure was a winner. Especially if you're not a fan of the taste of plain steamed veg (I wasn't really feeling it that night) this will take it to a whole new level. Who knows, you might even enjoy eating your veg?

4. Sometimes I lie with my food pictures though.

You know the jist. Taking a picture of a plate of food misrepresenting the amount you actually eat. I mean, take a look at this:

I claim this to be my dinner. When it actual fact, while I was taking the photograph I was also nom-ing on...

A CARROT! Bum, bum, buuuuuuum!

In all seriousness though, I do know that some bloggers conveniently forget the fact that along with their miniscule salad they ate for dinner they might have had a cookie, or a chocolate or something, so don't believe everything you read! You had absolutely no idea about that carrot!

Until I showed you.

:)

5. Lastly, what's the deal with coconut flour.

I keep coming back to it every now and again to see if it somehow magically got easier to work with when baking, and every time I'm severely disappointed in the results. See, I generally use it to make microwave mug cakes, but they just turn out so dense and chewy and weirdly cooked and.. yeh.

Banana +

Almond milk, spelt flour, coconut flour, cinnamon, baking powder, coconut, chia seeds, rolled oats and oat bran:

Mix it up and...

The coconut flour soaked up ALL the liquid! Had to add more water because I was out of milk.
Microwaved for around 2 mins and topped with coconut butter:

I mean it still tasted pretty darn tasty, I just think coconut flour is more hassle then it's worth.

I still ate the whole thing of course- it had a great flavour!

Aaaaand that's been my life currently in regards to food!

Your turn:

Smooth or crunchy nut butters?

 Current food obsession?

Have you had any success baking with coconut flour? Any horror stories? ;)

Want to see what everyone else is thinking about this Thursday? Head on over to Spoons to find out!

 I hope you all have a fabulous day, take some time out to do something you truly enjoy and as alaways; eat something delicious! Bye for now friends!! :D